Indiana University and the World: A Celebration of Collaboration, 1890–2018

By Patrick O'Meara and Leah K. Peck

The story of a Midwestern university’s extensive engagement with nations and people around the globe, in words and pictures.

Indiana University’s administration, faculty, and staff believe that an international reach is a central part of the teaching and research identity of a great university. From “summer tramps” led by faculty in the later 1800s, to providing support to a struggling German higher education system devastated by World War II, to partnering with Kenyan medical institutions and collaborating with Ukrainian parliamentarians, IU has participated in a diverse range of international opportunities.

What connects these seemingly disparate efforts is their reciprocal nature. IU’s international activities have benefited countless individuals while also providing opportunities for the intellectual development of faculty and students. This commitment to international engagement continues into Indiana University’s third century, with the launch of Gateway offices in economically and culturally dynamic parts of the world such as China, India, Germany, and Mexico. This book takes a journey around the world with Indiana University, from Pakistan to Poland to Palestine, and shares stories of lives changed.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Open Road Integrated Media
• Release date: Jul 30, 2019
• ISBN: 9780253044297

Book preview

INTRODUCTION

It is surprising that a campus, which originally operated out of a small town in southern Indiana, should not only seek out opportunities in foreign countries but that it should do so with eagerness and enthusiasm.

BY EARLY IN THE TWENTIETH CENTURY, INDIANA UNIVERSITY HAD become increasingly involved in different parts of the world. It is surprising that a campus, which originally operated out of a small town in southern Indiana, should not only seek out opportunities in foreign countries but that it should do so with eagerness and enthusiasm. How and why IU made these choices is the underlying theme of this book. Visionary presidents and academic administrators, increasing numbers of faculty who valued international ideas, and generations of students who were ready to explore the wider world, became part of IU’s academic culture and legacy. There were many successes, and only a few setbacks; there were always risks and rewards. As IU began to celebrate its bicentennial, acknowledging IU’s global and international accomplishments was more relevant than ever before, but this outlook also demanded greater resources and enterprise than in the past. The chapters in this book show that while the historic contexts differed, such needs were always there; it took courage and far-sightedness to meet them.

It is with Herman B Wells in the 1950s that guiding principles for international engagement became a central part of the mission of the university. Wells believed that the university should bring the world to the students from the towns and cities of the state; they should encounter firsthand the art, languages, ideas, and people from different countries: We have been fortunate through the years also to have on our campus the rich resource of many students from overseas…. Thus any student in the university, regardless of how small or provincial the town from which the student came, can become acquainted with students from various places throughout the world, and through their eyes and through their minds come to gain a new appreciation and new understanding of the world in which we live.¹

Salon and Dining Room, Spring 1910, residence of Harvey Bordner (note the Indiana University pennant). IU Archives (P0054332).

IU frequently became involved in countries that were going through conflicts, fundamental changes, or transitions, or that were in the midst of renewing or redefining their social, economic, and political structures.

In turn, Wells saw IU serving the world by mutually sharing knowledge, skills, and resources. He himself became an active and formative participant in the university’s overseas projects. Generations of faculty and administrators followed in his footsteps. In the early days of its development, Indiana University, along with other American universities, had been greatly assisted by older European universities…. So the American university, now among the strongest anywhere, had an obligation to repay the debt to the world of scholarship through extending assistance to new universities in the developing lands.²

In 1945, soon after the end of World War II, Wells represented the American Council on Education at the founding conference of the United Nations in San Francisco. This was an era that witnessed the ending of colonial power, the emergence of new nations, and the need for expanding access to higher education internationally.

The 1950s and 1960s marked the beginning of a new international order; one of the directions was toward the building or enhancement of institutions and the technical assistance, skills, training, and organizational structures needed to run them. At the heart of these programs was the need to provide better governance, alleviate poverty, and improve people’s lives.

Overseas development projects, which are the primary focus of this book, were always grounded in this key mission of the university. At their heart was the connection to departments, schools, or international programs and centers; they have never been major sources of revenue, nor were they seen as such. When they flourished, they benefited countless lives in developing countries and, at the same time, provided opportunities for the intellectual growth of IU faculty and students.

IU frequently became involved in countries that were going through conflicts, fundamental changes, or transitions, or that were in the midst of renewing or redefining their social, economic, and political structures. An interesting pattern emerges of the university’s assistance at times of upheaval—from Herman Wells in a decimated Berlin after World War II to countries such as Liberia, Macedonia, South Sudan, and South Africa in moments of rebuilding and reconstruction. At the same time, there were tangible returns to the state of Indiana, the United States, and various other countries because of the real economic impact resulting from improving the education of a larger number of people.

The history of these projects provides a vivid depiction of a university in the world. Indiana University faculty, administrators, and graduate students became increasingly involved in bilateral and mutually beneficial projects in Africa, Asia, Central Asia, the Balkans, Latin America, and Europe. Funding for these development projects was awarded by foundations, government agencies, private enterprise, and overseas governments. In all these projects, IU staunchly adhered to its academic integrity and independence, the free exchange of ideas, and the strict fiscal guidelines and authority of the university.

The intellectual and pedagogical benefits of the international development projects were enormous. New knowledge was generated, faculty expanded their expertise, and students were drawn into unique opportunities.

The university insisted on its jurisdiction and autonomy in selecting those who participated in these projects. The applications for funding were competitive, and, at the national level, they underwent peer reviews and project outcomes were publicly available. In most cases, there were strong connections between overseas projects and IU’s highly ranked language and area studies programs that were concerned with Africa, Russia and East Europe, Central Asia, East Asia, the Middle East, and West Europe. Beginning in the 1950s, IU had expanded and enhanced these programs by hiring outstanding scholars and attracting highly qualified graduate students.

The intellectual and pedagogical benefits of the international development projects were enormous. New knowledge was generated, faculty expanded their expertise, and students were drawn into unique opportunities. In these projects, faculty members and key administrators shared knowledge and technical know-how; junior faculty from the partner institutions received advanced degrees; graduate and undergraduate students completed degrees; computers and library materials were put in place. At the same time, IU faculty and staff were challenged to bridge theory and practice in cross-cultural contexts.

Herman B Wells at the 12th General Assembly of the United Nations, 1957. Left to right: American film actress and singer Irene Dunne, Herman B Wells, Albert Sidney Johnson Carnahan (US representative from Missouri), and Walter Henry Judd (US representative from Minnesota). Photograph by Leo Rosenthal. IU Archives (P0023785).

Less tangible and more difficult to measure were positive changes in the fostering of tolerance, democratic ideals, minority rights, and peacekeeping. There were very real, but less quantifiable, outcomes that were probably of greater importance than buildings, physical plant, or even courses and administrative structures. The long-term ripple effects, however, were substantial; for example, countless lives in the cities and towns of countries were improved because of better teachers, doctors, and public servants.

New choices characterized the early years of the twenty-first century, an era of rapid technological innovation. IU was uniquely poised to transcend time and geographic differences by using new modes of communication and teaching with universities, colleagues, students, and alumni throughout the world.

As with all human endeavors, these programs came to an end when their purposes were achieved; the expectation was that there would be self-sustained growth after the departure of IU. Principles of international engagement have become part of the culture of Indiana University; indeed, they are woven into the very fabric of the institution through visions and commitments of presidents such as Herman Wells, John Ryan, Thomas Ehrlich, and Myles Brand. Michael McRobbie’s presidency reflected his deep commitment to the university’s international and global mission. Immediately after his appointment, he established the university’s first vice presidency for international affairs. When McRobbie came to IU, he already had an extensive network of colleagues in different parts of Asia. Once at IU, he expanded these connections. He initiated the university’s first international plan and indicated that he would seek to create a new school of global and international studies. He also announced that there would be a major new international building on the Bloomington campus. He began to travel to every continent to meet with IU alumni and to explore new linkages and relationship. A direct outcome was the creation of innovative IU Gateways in India, China, and Germany. McRobbie also reaffirmed the ongoing relevance of overseas development projects: Drawing on our long and rich tradition of international engagement, we must remember that education and research—IU’s two fundamental missions—are the seeds for success in a world growing increasingly flat and seamless. Global literacy and collaboration have never been more important than they are now.³

David Zaret, former vice president for international affairs at IU, reflects, What I admire about Michael is the passion and enthusiasm as well as the insight that informs his commitment to IU’s engagements around the world. He positively delights in working to advance them. He is a leading voice in this country for international engagements by America’s top research universities.⁴

The context in which the university operates in the twenty-first century, however, has required IU to change some of the ways that it engages with the world. The global and international opportunities and constraints that Indiana University faced at the beginning of the twenty-first century were dramatically different from those after World War II. While nation-states and geopolitical regions remained important, the impact of trade, energy, access to water resources, information technology, population movements, and religious fundamentalism were becoming increasingly global. These required new intercultural and international skills, understanding, and competencies. New choices characterized the early years of the twenty-first century, an era of rapid technological innovation. IU was uniquely poised to transcend time and geographic differences by using new modes of communication and teaching with universities, colleagues, students, and alumni throughout the world. To address this new milieu, IU also became more purposeful by continuing to foster international development, transitional, and renewal projects that are linked to the mission of the university; insisting that exchange agreements should only be with prestigious partners in regions of the world that had been predetermined in order to meet long-term research, teaching, service, and fund-raising opportunities; and establishing IU overseas footprints abroad through the IU Gateway offices around the globe.

Indiana University president Michael McRobbie and first lady Laurie Burns McRobbie with IU alumni at the Asia-Pacific Alumni Conference in Bali, Indonesia, May 2015. Photograph courtesy of Indiana University.

The first significant international activity at Indiana University began in 1879.

SOON AFTER ITS FOUNDING IN THE NINETEENTH CENTURY, Indiana University began to engage in international activities when faculty members and students from abroad found their ways to Bloomington. The first significant international activity at Indiana University, in the form of a study abroad trip, began in 1879. At first, this was an untried academic venture. There were no study abroad offices or advisers; purchasing of tickets and planning had to be done by mail. The logistics must have been daunting. Students had to travel by train to the East Coast, board a steamship for Europe, and then travel from country to country, often by foot.

The study abroad program was a great success, and each year, for the next ten years, faculty organized and led a series of summer tramps to Europe with twenty to thirty students and some professors. The groups studied natural history, language, and culture in Switzerland, Germany, Italy, France, and England. Archival material indicates that in 1881, there were twenty-eight participants, eleven women and seventeen men.

An 1879 advertisement for the 1880 tramp reads as follows:

INDIANA UNIVERSITY SUMMER TRAMP

Thuringia, Switzerland, Provence.

Daily instruction in German and French. Special attention to Natural History.

Announcement for the 1880 Summer Tramp. IU Archives (P0073785).

The Party for 1890 leave Indianapolis about June 15th, take steamer from New York to Germany, visiting Berlin and Dresden.

A Walk of 50 Miles through Saxon Switzerland and Thurlagia, visiting Weimar then via Nuremberg and Munich to Switzerland.

A walk of 250 miles, through the Bernese Oberland, by Lake of Lucerne, St. Gotthardt, Tosa Falls, Simplon Pass and Matterhorn to Italy; by rail to Milan and Genoa; by steamer to Marseille. A Tour through Provence, then via Avignon to Geneva; Mt. Blanc; by rail to Paris; a week in England, returning about September 20th. Fee, $30. Total Expenses, $300.¹

These early study abroad ventures recognized the importance for faculty and students to know and teach about other societies; to learn languages; to acquire new knowledge through direct experiences; and to be sensitive to other cultures. From these early beginnings, principles were woven into the international fabric of the university. Indeed, Indiana University’s international roots include an instructor from Ireland who came to Bloomington in the middle of the nineteenth century and the first international student, who came from Japan around 1890.

Early in the twentieth century, Indiana University faculty members in education started the university’s long and substantial history of assisting with overseas projects.

Early in the twentieth century, Indiana University faculty members in education started the university’s long and substantial history of assisting with overseas projects. In 1901, Professor Elmer Burritt Bryan accepted the appointment as principal of the Insular Normal school in the Philippines. Two years later, he became superintendent of education for the islands. In this capacity, he directed an educational system that employed eight hundred American teachers—many of them graduates of Indiana University. These teachers became known as the Thomasites, named after the first ship to carry American teachers to the Philippines—the USS Thomas. Professor Bryan also encouraged many Filipino students to further their education in the United States and, in particular, at Indiana University.²

IU had another connection to the Philippines. IU graduate and later law school dean, Paul V. McNutt, served as high commissioner to the Philippines from 1937 to 1939, after he was governor of Indiana. When McNutt Residence Quadrangle was completed on the Bloomington campus in 1964, six residence halls in the complex were named for Thomasite teachers.³

The January 2, 1903, edition of the New York Times announced the appointment of IU alumnus and faculty member Elmer B. Bryan as the superintendent of education for the Philippines. During his appointment, Bryan employed nearly eight hundred American teachers. After his time in the Philippines, he went on to be president of Franklin College, Colgate University, and Ohio University.

US Army Transport Thomas, which brought the first group of American teachers to the Philippines in 1901. Photograph courtesy of Jonathan Klinghorn, www.atlantictransportline.us.

An American schoolteacher in a classroom at the Moro School, Zamboanga, Mindanao, Philippines, 1901 or 1902. Duke University Archives.

Instructors in the Bulacan Normal School, 1910. From the collection of Harvey Bordner. IU Archives (P0025053).

One other noteworthy effort took place in 1929, when students went to Munich, Germany, for a six-week for-credit summer school to study music, art, and languages. Of course, with the outbreak of World War II, such activities were on hold.

While the rich history of Indiana University’s global development efforts dates back to these early activities, sustained and substantial institutional activities abroad began with the presidency of Herman B Wells. In the 1950s and 1960s, a new era began; the direction was toward the building or enhancement of institutions and the technical assistance, skills, training, and organizational structures needed to run them. For Wells, such programs also had a direct benefit on the academic mission of the university: Of course, the more interest the administration evidenced in the international dimension, the more pervasive was its influence throughout the university and, to some extent, the state.⁴

Initiating the modern era of IU’s increasing global and international engagement, Wells traveled far and wide, and his international vision and planning set the course for the university’s future. Under his leadership, international activities began to flourish. By our taking an active part in these international projects, the benefits would be two way: while lending whatever help we could to institutions abroad, we would be greatly enriching the store of experience, knowledge, and professional competence of our faculty participants in the assistance programs who, upon their return, would bring to the campus a comparative view that would stimulate the atmosphere of learning in the university.⁵

Thus, for Wells, the campus in Bloomington was not confined to Indiana but needed to look outward to the wider world. It was his belief that these contacts not only contribute richly to the development of their respective countries but also serve to spread the fame and name of Indiana University throughout the world.⁶

For Wells, the campus in Bloomington was not confined to Indiana but needed to look outward to the wider world.

By the mid-1960s, it had become clear that the growth of international activities on the Bloomington campus called for an administrative structure to coordinate and facilitate existing programs and to assist in finding new opportunities for the university. Over the next ten years, various approaches were implemented—including the creation of a center and a committee—until in 1975, a formal office was established. These new administrative structures reflected the increasing sophistication of the university’s overseas commitments; indeed, they are an interesting reflection on how a major university refines and expands its international mission.

At the Indiana University Board of Trustees meeting in May 1965, Vice President Lynn L. Merritt presented a proposal for